One Last Time
by Jackie0114
Summary: One year after Ultimecia, the headmaster sets up new classes for students in case of another Sorceress were to emerge. With the new classes and new instructor, the gang learns a few new things and learn of an ancient Sorceress named Jenova. FFVII/FFVIII
1. Preparing for the New Instructors

A/N: Hello there and thank you for taking the time to read my fic. The idea kept eating away at my brain and I had to put it down on paper, thus leading to post my story online. I'm still working on the plot, trying to figure things around and see if it works. But for now please enjoy and leave words of encouragement!

Oh, I also changed the title from "Just Begun" I didn't really like the title to begin with. Also I added a couple of things is here, no major changes though, hope you guys don't mind.

Disclaimer: I own nothing, unfortunately. If I did I'd pay off my tuition in a heart beat.

Grading papers was never her favorite thing to do as an instructor. She could teach and lecture about how to junction magic where it would be most efficient but not over bearing on the caster. She could lecture about the theory behind the guardian forces about how junctioning them causes memory loss. Alas, what would teaching be without checking if her students comprehended the material she taught? All her time and effort would be put to waste if she didn't give out homework or exams.

Still, grading almost one hundred papers was still a pain in the ass.

A year since the defeat of Ultimecia, Quistis Trepe was given back her teaching license. She had been second in command when Squall split them up into groups or when Squall looked for guidance in what direction to take. He had always confided in Quistis when making strategic decision making. After all, she was his instructor before he became the fearless leader of the group. Squall and everyone else vouched for Quistis to get her teaching license back. Had she not taught herself to restrict her emotions, she would have cried tears of joy from the support that her friends were giving her.

Her friends gave her so much support, that she actually got to teach introduction to advance juntioning and offensive magic. The position was a bit of a shock due to the fact that Garden didn't have any courses concerning specific tools of combat. However, Headmaster Cid took it upon himself that she, and some new instructors, were to try out the new system. The system was to break down certain types of tools so that students can excel in one, rather than be average or less. This way, if there was an attack on Garden or if they were called to war, there would specific Seeds who can best handle the situation because of their specialties; such as spell users or blade wielders.

Quistis was more than happy to take on the position of teaching offensive magic since the course were meant for Seeds anyways. Why not? After all, that was her specialty, and no one could come close to her magic, well except Rinoa, but she's a sorceress that didn't count. Going through the exams for her intro do advanced junctioning, she came across a student whose test had an arrow on it pointing to the left of the paper.

"_C'mon Trepe, do I really have to take all these bullshit tests? We both know I'm perfectly capable of relying on my own well rounded skills than magic anyways"_

Quistis smiled at the comment. Seifer would never change. He had been admitted back to Garden after Matron was pardoned of all the events that took place a year ago. It would have been hypocritical of the Garden to accept Matron but not the ex-knight. Plus Cid wanted all his children living together again. At first Seifer didn't want to come back, knowing that he would not be accepted and looked down upon for the mistakes he had made. But Quistis, after 3 weeks of bickering and constant fighting, got him to at least agree to stay for a semester just to see what everyone would do or say. If the students didn't want him there, then he'd leave, but if they left him alone, then he would stay. After a semester had passed, many of the students believed that he was under the impression of Matron's spell which explained the betrayal of Garden, or were too scared to approach him. Although he in fact acted on his own will and was not under any sort of spell, that little bit of information could be left out. His choice of staying at Garden was rewarded by Cid and Matron by giving him the position of a middle class Seed. Since then Seifer and Quistis had developed an interesting relationship. There would be days when they would be at each others throat, or rather just Quistis after Seifers who seemed amused, about her teaching methods and theories on certain topics. The debates always lead to the class taking sides and counteracting others argument. This was a good way to get the class to participate despite the fact that it was first encouraged by a dispute between a teacher and her student. There were those days and then there were those when they would get along just fine. Days when Seifer would unexpectedly do random acts of kindness, buying her lunch accompanying her to the library (even though he claims that was route to patrol), leaving coffee for he morning class. Yes those random acts of kindness. Quistis believed that he was simply repaying for her "encouragement" and "determination" to bring him back. None the less they were sweet

She finished grading her students' exams and began to place them in her folders. Pleased with the fact that many of her students were not only paying attention to her lectures, but learning from them as well. This year would be very promising indeed. Last year, before her license was revoked, many of he students, particularly the Trepies wrote love poems or songs instead answering the questions. Perhaps they learned that she was more interested if they were learning in her class rather than just gazing at her when she lectured. She got up and left her desk wanting to reward herself with lunch for finishing up the last of the exams for her three classes.

She walked towards the food court, greeting many passing students. As she reached the cafeteria, she noticed that Seifer was sitting at a table along with Fujin and Rajin discussing something that apparently got Seifer to let out a hearty laugh and a disgust look from Fujin. Deciding not to bother Seifer today, Quistis went straight to the salad bar. She waited in line for a moment until someone had snatched her beloved hairclip from its sacred place, leaving her golden hair to flow freely .

"Thought you could sneak past me eh instructor? What's wrong? Afraid those Trepies will freak out when they see their beloved Goddess hanging around with Gardens biggest reject?" Seifer said as he smirked holding her clip in his hands prying open the mouth of her clip.

Afraid that he may break her favorite brown clip she quickly snatched it from his hands and placed it back in her honey blonde hair.

"Charming Seifer charming. And I wasn't avoiding you; I just wanted to get my food first. I haven't eaten anything today." She said as she took a tray and plastic plate and began to place salad over it.

"From the way you look, I wouldn't be surprised; you're as thin as my pinky. What's wrong? Your job not paying you good enough to feed yourself with some real food? You have to resort to this, Chocobo food your about to eat?" He took a tray as well and began to fill his plate with what he described as chocobo food.

"Then what are you doing eating the same thing?"

"I'm only getting it cause this happens to be the only line that's not that long. As you can see the one o'clock classes just ended. Or are they not paying you enough so that you can't get proper glasses to see out of?"

"I'm so happy that you're concerned about my financial business" She said as she rolling her eyes while grabbing some chicken.

"Just looking out for my favorite Instructor. And since I'm being so generous I'll even pay for your lunch so that you got some extra money for your poor self. Consider it charity towards getting better corrected lenses."

"Your such an ass you know that?"

"Heh, that's who I am. Glad to see that Quistis will be joining us for lunch and not Instructor Trepe."

That's as far as the random act of kindness goes for Seifer. He'll usually push Quistis to the point when she uses vulgar language towards him. That was his way of getting her out of teacher mode. After they finished paying, they sat at the table where Fujin and Rajin were located.

"Where did Rajin and Fujin go?"

Seifer took a bite of his salad before responding. "Class with the new instructors."

"Oh which ones?" She said after mixing her salad with the dressing.

"I don't know, Rajin's got class with that one chick that teaches about advance magic or some shit like that" he said as he fished around his salad for a winning piece a lettuce to munch on.

"Must be talking about Miss Gainsborough. And it's not advance magic but a different kind of magic called materia"

"Whatever. Fujin has class in the auditorium with those guys that came out of that elite military on the east side. Solider right?"

Quistis nodded as she took a bite from her salad." Instructor Fair and Instructor Strife, they teach how to sufficiently use different types of weapons. There Gardens biggest class on, over 600 students."

"Beats the hell out of me how that works. How the fuck do you grade all those papers?" He said as he stabbed a tomato before placing it in his mouth.

"It's called online assignments and teacher assistants."

"Whatever, I'm switching my intro to elementary statistics class over to that class. I'm sure Fujin won't mind the company" He took another bite of his salad before taking Quistis drink from her hand.

She watched as he downed half of her drink with her hand still out. "Please help yourself…"

He smirked as he finished drinking. "Heh, don't mind if I do instructor."

As much as she would have loved to strangle Seifer until he runs out of air, she had to return to her dorm room and prepare for the other instructors who were to arrive in Garden soon.

"As much as I enjoy your company, but I have to go" She stood up and headed for the trash can to discard the remains of her lunch.

Seifer ate the rest of his lunch and followed Quistis. "Well since you enjoy my company so much I'll escort you to where you're going. Wouldn't want you to miss me just yet"

She hated him sometimes, she really did. She hated it even more that she was actually starting to appreciate his company. Those times back when she was convincing him to come back to Balamb really did something to her. She was actually starting to think he was, dare say, attractive. His appearance changed since he was accepted back into Garden. Instead of his usual gray trench coat and blue shirt, he no longer wore his signature coat and only wore a dark gray short sleeved shirt with a white t-shirt inside along with loose navy blue jeans. She never noticed how muscular he was until now...

"It's fine Seifer, I'm just heading to my dorm to drop off a few things then I'll be heading over to see the headmaster".

"What do you need to see the headmaster for? Getting fired again? Seriously Trepe you need to stop fraternizing..."

She gave Seifer an angry glare. "It's to prep the new instructors. You already know about Gardens new program to help students develop their own unique skills. I'm just going over there to show them around Garden and get them familiar with the place"

"So you're playing tour guide? Wow, they needed to have you, Gardens prodigy child, one of the saviors of the world, play tour guide? That's fucking hilarious.

She wanted to say something, but it was true. They could have asked Selphie or some other student to show them around but no, they absolutely needed her to be there.

Why did she get the idea that Squall was the one that dumped it on her?

On the other hand, she was also the one who showed Instructors, Fair, Strife, and Gainsborough around the school. How she remembered seeing the two male instructors for the first time. She had to restrain herself from staring at the two handsome men throughout the tour.

She sighed "Well it's a little too late for me to say anything; I didn't really have a choice."

"Well who're the poor saps that are gonna be teaching here?"

"I'm not quite sure, all I know is that one of them is a martial artist and the other is a gun specialist. The other two I didn't have time to read over. It's interesting how most of the them come from all the same school, well except the two from Soldier. That and some of them are quite young."

"Well from the way that Rajin and everyone else talk about how great looks, I don't have any complaints."

"Heh what if they're like Instructors Fair and Strife?"

Seifer shrugged at the thought. "You mean two fags with fucked up, gravity defying hair, who think they can teach about how to use certain weapons, and that all the girls in Garden are drooling over? Forget it."

She laughed at Seifer as they neared her dormitory. "Didn't know you were so jealous over them. Anyway aren't you supposed to be in class?"

"Five or ten minutes late ain't gonna kill they guy, besides, its engineering and he's only temporarily until one of the new instructors show up...and who said I was jealous?"

Quistis took out her key card and swiped it before entering. "Thank you for accompanying me to my dorm but I think you should get to class before your instructor or whomever decides to report you."

The door was supposed to have closed, so that she would see the door, not a close up on Seifer's face. She didn't realize that he was blocking the door with his hand, preventing it from sliding shut. "What's wrong? Am I making you nervous?" He said with a smirk on his face. Any other girl would have been weak in the knees, grabbed his face and kiss him passionately if they were in Quistis's shoes. Fortunately for her, she wasn't just any girl, she was Quistis fucking Trepe.

With that said she leaned in a bit closer so that their noes were almost touching with a deadly smile on her face that would have melted the heart of any of the Trepies. "No, but if you ever come this close to me again and come into my room uninvited, I will break all of your bones and beat you until even the headmaster won't be able to recognize you" She leaned back and then kicked Seifer out of her room so that her door closed.

At the other side of the door, Seifer fell on the ground holding his stomach. He got up after a few seconds then straightened himself out and headed towards the exit. He rubbed ass, which he was sure there was a bruise now, and smirked. "Fucking bitch."

Inside her dorm, Quistis set her things aside. She smiled as she remembered the look on Seifers face as he was about to hit the ground. "_Priceless_" she thought. She then headed to her desk that had a manila folder on top of it. She opened it and skimmed through the each of the new instructor's profile.

_"Lets see here...Instructor Tifa Lockheart is the martial artist, Instructor Vincent Valentine the gun specialist, Instructor Nanaki...hmm doesn't give a last name nor picture but teaches history how odd, and Instructor Cid Highwind the...engineer specialist"....._

A/N: Well that's the end chapter one! Pleases R&R and tell me what you think and again please leave words of encouragement.


	2. Mutated Moomba?

Jackie0114: I was hoping for more reviews, I guess not =/ oh well I'll keep writing so I feel accomplished. Anyways next chapter! Oh side note, I know that Galbadia, Balamb, Lunar Cry, Trabia, and Esthar are separate continents but for the sake of the fic and fitting both VII and VIII's things are a little different. All of FFVIII's continents are on the west side of the world and FFVII's continents are on the east side. Basically think big meteor and earthquakes hitting Gaia before man causing chunks of land to separate

Disclaimer: I don't own anything sadly.

The elevator ride to the headmaster always seemed to last unnecessarily long. Quistis just wanted to get things over with as quickly as she could, so can resume her focus on her classes, not as a tour guide. She really hoped that everything will run smoothly and quickly, unlike her first encounter with the first three she had dealt with…

**Flashback**

She walked into the Headmaster's office, knowing that she would have to show the new instructors their way around. Honestly, did it have to be her? She was in the middle of planning out her next weeks schedule for the class until Squall, who is now the Headmaster's second in command since the war, called her to meet with him in his office. A rather small office compared to Cid's ridiculously and highly unnecessary room. When she arrived in the office she expected to see Squall and the two instructors. She was completly thrown off when she saw Squall speaking to two very handsome and very young men. Were these the new instructors? No, they're far too young. Must be new transfer students. But then again, there was no one else in the room aside from Squall. These two couldn't possible be the instructors, they looked to be only 2 or 3 years older than herself! Upon analyzing them, the first thing she noticed about them was that the two men had very… interesting hair. The one with blond haired, which reminded her of a chocobo, was wearing an all black slacks and dress coat, with his black dress shirt missing a tie and was slightly unbuttoned at the top. The other with black hair that resembled a hedgehog, was also wearing black slacks, with a white dress shirt half tucked in, and unbuttoned to the point where you can see his white undershirt.

"_How much hair gel do they use?! And here I thought no one could beat Zell's ridiculous…"_ she thought as she stood there still baffled about their unique hair.

Though the hair was rather, different, that was excused when she saw their faces. Both men had glowing radiant eyes. Not the kind that glowed like evil zombies in horror films, no, but the kind that were bright enough so it was noticeable. And the color! The color was a mixture of blue and green that created a sea-green color. Never in her entire life had she seen something so...

"Ahem, Instructor Trepe, I'm glad to see you here. I hope I wasn't disrupting anything" Squall said in his usual calm yet commanding tone of voice.

She snapped out of her thoughts, and directed her attention to the co-commander. "Of course not" she said "_No nothing important, except trying to plan out my lectures for our future Seeds and trying to prepare them as mercenaries_" She thought bitterly.

"As I said over the phone, we needed someone to show our new instructors around Garden, just so they become familiar with the school. Instructor Fair, Instructor Strife, this will be your tour guide Instructor Quistis Trepe."

"_Yea tour guide…So they are the new instructors" _She then faced the two.

"Pleased to meet you and welcome to Garden. I must say you both are a lot younger than what I had imagined." No she wasn't expecting two gorgeous looking men in what looked to be in their early twenties.

The one with the long black spiky hair, Instructor Fair, with an all too familiar grin that reminded her of a certain martial artist spoke first.

"Really? Well, from what the co-commander said over here, you're the youngest to receive a teaching license in Garden history. You're only what, 18?" He said in a matter-of-fact kind of tone, but in a playful way.

"_Did he mention that I was also the first one to have their license revoked so fast in Garden history?" _She thought as she smiled while clutching her jaw.

"19 actually, and I suppose you're right about that Instructor Fair" She let her hand out to shake his hand.

"Please, were both Instructors, no need to address us like that. Just Zack will do…" He said as he took her hand to his lips and placed a gentle kiss on her hand. "Ms. Trepe"

She blushed as she took her hand back. "Please, Quistis is fine as well."

The blonde one spoke next. "The same goes for me as well. I don't want to be addressed so formally. Makes me sound old. My name is Cloud by the way." Unlike Zack, Cloud simply shook Quistis's hand.

"Again pleasure to meet you both, commander, you said that there were three new instructors?"

"The other instructor is running late, her train was delayed so she'll show up a bit later." He said to Quistis as he was looking over some papers that were scattered along his desk and not looking at her.

"Alright, who is the other instructor?"

"Her name is Ms.-"

RING RING.

"Ugh, excuse for a second. Commander Squall here…" He listened to the other person on the line for a few seconds before responding.

"Ok just give me second." He placed his hand over the phone.

"Sorry, about that, but we won't be able to wait for the other instructor. I'm kind of busy at the moment; Quistis just go ahead and show the two around, the other instructor will just have to figure it out on her own. But if you do see her, her name is". He was then cut off again and directed his attention to the person on the phone "Yes sorry about that. Uh-huh…" Squall still unable to get off the phone, gestures his hand to Quistis to leave with the two.

"I guess we should get started, please this way." She walked towards the elevator along with Zack and Cloud following behind her.

Once they were all inside Quistis pressed the button bringing them to the first floor. The ride down was quiet and filled with an awkward silence. She analyzed the two on the way down, trying to figure out just exactly who they were. She wasn't given any information on them until Squall called her in, and he basically told her, well nothing. Just that there were three new instructors that needed to become familiar with the school grounds. However, just by looking at the two and judging from experience, she could tell that they weren't from any of the Gardens. Seeds were well disciplined cadets who obeyed every command given to them by their or any superiors. When she introduced herself to Zack, instead of a firm handshake or a Seed salute, he kissed her hand, which is definitely something no Seed would do, not that she didn't mind though. Any Seed wouldn't display that sort of affection in front of their superiors. Just who exactly were these two? They weren't from Seed but she could tell that they were experienced fighters. The way they were built and the scar that Zack had on his face that was all too perfectly cut to be an accident, showed they have seen the battlefield before. The questions were killing her, she just needed to know.

"So…where are you two from if you don't mind me asking?" She said as they exited the elevator heading toward the directory.

"Us? Well, we're actually not from this side of world. We're actually from this city called Midgar. Ever heard of it?" Zack said as he looked at Quistis.

"Midgar? You mean the city that runs off the earth's energy right? Come to think of it, don't all of the continents on the eastern side run off the same energy?"

"You bet, sucks up the earth's energy just so the people can waste it on home appliances instead of letting the planet live longer." He said in a half-joking, half-serious tone.

To be honest, the continents on both sides of the world were so different. The east relied heavily on the earth's energy while the other just used the basic electricity. Before Shinra, the power company and the major ruling government, discovered mako energy, both sides were on fairly good terms. It wasn't until after the discovery of mako that divided the world so that both sides became isolated from each other. Not only was their way of living different but the way how the countries ran were different as well. Balamb along with Esthar, Trabia, and Galbadia were individual countries that were ruled separately opposed to the eastern side where Shinra dictated many but not all of the countries. The east and west were so different from each other that if a person from Balamb were to go to Midgar, it would be as though they stepped into an entirely different world.

"I see. What university did you both attend to receive your teaching license?"

Cloud spoke this time. "We actually didn't go to any university."

They all stopped in front of the directory and faced each other. Quistis looked Cloud and raised one of her eyebrows. "What do you mean?"

"We got it in the military. Me and my buddy Cloud here, we've in the military long enough to decide what path to take. You see, after a certain amount of years of service, our military allows the veterans to branch off into two categories. One is to further our ranks in the military like being a lieutenant or commander or something like that. The other was to take on teaching or becoming a drill sergeants." Zack said.

"Alright, but I still don't see how you were able to teach at Balamb. Shouldn't you be teaching your military?"

"Yeah about that, once Cloud and I got our teaching license we taught for a couple of months within the military. Teaching there was good but there were so many procedures and limitations on what and how to teach. There wasn't a lot of freedom"

"Oh I see, so you left in order to teach in the way you wanted right?

"Heh basically and there aren't exactly schools that had that sort of program from where we're from, that was what the military was for. So we did our research, found out about schools for young mercenaries' a.k.a Garden, sent our resumes and bam! Got ourselves a job"

"We were fortunate that Balamb was trying out a new program that allowed us to teach exactly what we specialize in."

"I'm glad you're both happy you've found something you want to do. Not many people are quite as lucky as you two."

"Yea, it's amazing that both of us were hired too, almost as though we were meant to be here" Zack said as he smiled and looked around the Garden.

"Well I guess we should get started then, Quistis if you'll lead the way."

With that, Quistis showed Cloud and Zack around the entire Garden. She first started off with the cafeteria and explained when the best times to eat were and the times to avoid crowds. They were met by many stares, mostly by giggling and whispering girls and some angry looking Trepies. From there she showed them the training room and noted that it was the only room opened after hours. After that she showed them the parking garage for Seeds and some of the vehicles that were strictly used for Seed missions. Then she directed them towards the dorms. They had passed the library but Quistis didn't feel the need to take them inside, so she simply told them where it was located.

"These are the dorms for the students who live on campus. Here is where the regular students reside. On the left are where the Seeds dorm. Their dorms are more like lofts instead of the two bedroom dorms like the regular students. On the right are the teacher's dorms. Not all the teachers live here, but for those who do; their dorms are more like small one bedroom apartments. They also have lovely balconies and a view of the Balamb. Are you two planning on living on campus?"

"Don't know haven't thought about that yet, how much is the monthly rent?" Zack responded.

"It's about 1700 a month."

"Sounds a little pricey for apartments in a school don't cha think?"

"The inside is quite nice, nothing shabby if that's what you're thinking. That and everything here is provided for you."

"Oh, that makes sense I guess."

They continued back around, passing the infirmary and the quad, back to the directory.

"Well that's basically it for this floor. The second is where all the classrooms are located and the third is where the Headmaster is. Outside is the town of Balamb where if you want to get away from the school. They recently expanded the town and added a few stores, so feel free to head there for your shopping. Other than that you should probably check back with Squall to see which classroom you're assigned too."

Cloud turned his attention to Zack. "Yea lets head back up to see if Commander Squall is finished doing whatever it was he was doing and get any other information that we need before we head back to Midgar."

Zack nodded and they began to head towards the elevator. Half-way through the steps the elevator doors opened revealing a brown haired woman that had the same striking eyes as Cloud and Zack.

"Aerith?"

Aerith looked at Zack with a very surprised expression on her face "Zack…is that you?"

Zack raced to the top of the stairs and gave Aerith a tight hug while twirling her in the air before pulling away. "It is you! What are you doing here? God I haven't seen you in forever!"

Aerith looked at him and gave him a slight smile. "Zack you haven't changed a bit. You remember how I used to sell flowers right? Well I couldn't live off of selling flowers forever, so I saved up some money and went to Midgar University to get a license in teaching and nursing"

Quistis stepped in "Ah, then you must be the other instructor Squall was talking about. I'm Quistis Trepe, an instructor here in Garden and Zack and Cloud's tour guide."

Aerith smiled at her and shook her hand. "It's nice to meet you, my name is Aerith Gainsborough. Squall is the co-commander right? Headmaster Cid said I should meet with him when I get here. I tried to see him but he was too busy to meet with me."

"Yes that would be our commander, always working. "

"What, you're kidding! Cloud and I are teaching too! Were teaching, wait, what are YOU teaching? Why didn't you stay in Midgar?"

"I took up courses regarding the study of materia and the usage of it. None of the schools near Midgar or anywhere else had any courses for the subject so I looked abroad and found that Balamb Garden had a new program regarding the uses of magic, so I decided to give it a shot. I spoke with the Headmaster and he was thrilled that I wanted to teach magic and the study of materia. He thought it would be good to introduce materia to the students here."

"Oh I see, you know Cloud and are going to be teaching here too! We're gonna teach these kids on how to properly use different kinds of weapons" He said proudly with both hands on his hips grinning.

"I see…well.."

"Zack?" Cloud interrupting their conversation. "We're supposed to see the commander remember?"

Quistis was getting quite frustrated. She was just about to finish with the two and drop them back to Squall and then return to her dorm. Now, she was being held back and being forced to listen to Zack and Aerith catch up with each other. Quistis stared at Aerith as she spoke to the two. She couldn't help but notice Aerith's soft and angelic features. Her voice was very gentle and very soothing as she spoke to the men. She could swear that when she saw Aerith step into the sunlight there was a halo over her head. Everything about her was so pure and holy she should have been wearing white robes instead of her slim one piece red and white dress that looked like a two piece blouse and skirt. She continued to listen to their conversation until she noticed something about Aerith. If Quistis didn't know any better, she'd say that Aerith was forcing a smile on her face, as though she were trying to conceal something. Were her eyes…watery?

Zack looked at Cloud then back to Aerith completely oblivious to Aeriths feigned happiness. "By the way this is Cloud, a friend of mine from soldier. Cloud you remember me talking about Aerith right?"

"How could I forget, he talked about you all the time"

"Did he really?"

"Yeah, he would talk about you nonstop-"

"OK that's enough of that! Hey Cloud why don't you and Quistis go back to the big boss upstairs, while I show Aerith around?"

"Zack we both need to see-"

"C'mon Cloud! Just relay anything important back to me."

"Actually, I was on my way to meet with the doctor here. Ms. Trepe, do you know where the infirmary is?"

Quistis pointed to the right side. "The infirmary is the first room going to the right."

"Thank you very much, well it was nice to you again Zack. Cloud, Ms. Trepe it was a pleasure to meet you. Maybe I'll see you around later." With that said, Aerith was making her way down the stairs with Zack close behind her.

"Aerith wait! There's so much I need to say to you, and…"

"Zack please I need to go, we'll talk later, now is not the time"

"At least let me explain-"

"Zack I really need to go..."

"Just let me explain, I tried to contact you…"

"ZACK PLEASE!" Aerith turned around and looked at Zack surprising him along with Cloud and Quistis with her abrupt outburst.

"I can't talk to you right now ok? Do you really expect me to be excited to see you after two years? Two years Zack! Two whole years I thought you were dead and gone, only to see that you're here alive! You never responded to any of my letters, you never called, nothing! I just...you can't…. it's not fair…" She steadily began to slowly back away from Zack, while shaking her head.

"Aerith…" He tried to move in closer but she stepped back.

"I'm glad to see you're ok Zack, I really am… but I can't talk to you right now… please try and understand" She gave him a look with her pained eyes that slowly began to water up before heading towards the infirmary.

"Wait, Aerith!" Zack tried to run to her, but was held back by Cloud.

"Zack let her go; she doesn't want to see you. I know it's tough but give her some time. It's like she said, you can't expect her to be ok after two years of thinking you were dead. You can see her later, right now we need to go see Squall before we go."

"But-"

"Look you're going to see her again, she's gonna be working here with us too alright? She'll see you again just give her time."

Zack's face fell a bit. "I guess…God I'm an idiot…I was just so happy to see her I wasn't thinking…"

They all went to the elevator and proceeded to Squall's office. Quistis didn't know what to say. She wanted to ask about Aerith, but decided against it. It wasn't her place to ask nor was it any of her business. She really wanted to go back to her dorm and go back to work. When they reached the top, she escorted them back to the front of Squall's office and left.

**End Flashback **

That day was rather awkward for her and for Cloud. She remembered seeing Cloud's face trying to get Zack to stop talking, noticing that he was upsetting Aerith. Yes, she hoped that today would go by smoothly, with no encounters like the last. Once she reached the top she headed towards Squall's office. The door was open, so she walked right in. First thing she noticed right away was that there was some sort of mutated moomba. Well at least it kind of looked like a moomba, it looked more like a cross between a lion and wolf but red and orange, with it's mane slightly brown with a tatooe of XIII and a scar on its left eye. Sitting next it, was a woman with medium length dark brown hair, wearing a black cropped pants with a blue silk blouse with a v-neck opening and black heels. Some how a normal tour around the school was something out of reach for Quistis.

"Commander?"

This time Squall wasn't so busy today, he was actually paying attention to the four in front of him. Probably was just as shocked as Quistis was right now. He diverted his attention from the, moomba like thing, and noticed Quistis.

"Right on time. Instructors please meet your fellow colleague and guide for today, Instructor Quistis Trepe. Quistis, I assume you already looked over each of the instructors files before getting here correct?"

"I have, though I wasn't quite prepared as I thought."

" _There's a goddamn animal thing in the room that I could have sworn was talking"_

"You must be referring to me, I assume. Please allow me to introduce myself, my name is Nanaki, I am the one who will be teaching history to the human youth here."

_"Alright, so it was talking, not't making it any easier on me..."_

"Um nice to meet you. I'm sorry if I come off as being rude, but what are you if you don't mind me asking?"

"Quistis, that's not-"

"It's alright commander, nothing to be upset over, it's all part of the human curiosity. It's rather difficult for me to speak about myself for I too know very little about my race. You see, I am part of an extinct species that once resided over in Cosmo Canyon. I'm actually the last of my kind so there is little to be known about me.

For the first time in Quistis life, she found herself dumbstruck.

"Hah, poor girl looks more confused than a fish looking for water in its goddamn bowl! Don't worry too much there miss!

Quistis looked at the blonde 35 year old man who was smiling at her and standing with one hand in his pocket and the other on Nanaki's head.

"You must be Cid Highwind, the engineer instructor."

She could tell that he was an engineer almost immediately. He was the only one, minus Nanaki of course, who wasn't dressed up. Cid wore a navy blue jacket, with a white shirt, dark green pants, and leather gloves and boots. He also had a pair of goggles on with a pack of cigarettes underneath the strap. Really were those necessary?

"You bet cha, and don't let the fur ball here scare you. He may not look like it but he's a big old softy, wouldn't hurt a fly! Shoot, I remember the first time we met I nearly shit myself. Never seen anything like him"

"I'm sorry, it's just, I'm so astound that you can speak our language, forgive my ignorance"

"Please, there's nothing to be forgiven about. I understand that my being is rather questionable and needs further study to fully comprehend exactly what I am. I'm quite used to the many questions your race asks upon me."

"I see." Trying not to insult Nanaki any further, Quistis decided to change the subject. "In any case, welcome to Garden. How is it you two know each other?"

"Please Cid, language. It's not professional." Nanaki said to Cid regarding his profanity from a while ago before responding to Quistis.

"We went to the same academy together and took some of the same classes"

"_How the hell did he even go to school_?"Quistis thought.

"Hmph! Dammit Red, if I want to curse I'll fucking curse all I want. None of these kids can tell me otherwise, not even the goddamn commander can tell me that. You got a problem with it, then talk to yer Headmaster, but I'm tellin you now, it ain't gonna do you any good"

Quistis chuckled at that remark; she looked at Squall who simply just shook his head and gave Cid an irritated look. She would have to ask Squall about that later. There was something about Cid that reminded her of someone but couldn't quite put her finger on it. She then turned to the tall man in the back who she assumed was Vincent Valentine, the gun specialist. He had been quiet for a while.

"So I guess that makes you Vincent Valentine right?"

He looked at her with his dark red eyes and nodded before responding. "Indeed"

Quistis got chills from his response, and it wasn't because of his deep brooding voice either. There was something eerie about him that made her feel uncomfortable which was odd. He didn't look like it though, in fact, he was quite attractive. With his jet black hair that appeared to be stop at his jaw, but the rest was tied back, making his hair go all the way to the mid section of his back. He wore a dark blue suit that was almost black with the same colored tie and a white dress shirt underneath.

Now that all the males were out of the way, that left only the woman beside Squall. She didn't notice at first, but she looked strikingly similar to a certain brown haired sorceress. Squall seemed to notice it too as he kept looking at her.

"And then that leaves Ms. Tifa Lockheart. You'll be teaching martial arts here at Garden?" She said while walking over to her.

"Not just that, but I'll be teaching students how to rely on their entire body in battle, not just solely on their weapons or magic." She said while shaking Quistis's hand.

There wasn't much to say about Ms. Lockheart except that she didn't really look like a martial artist. She wasn't a petite woman nor was she large. She was one of those girls who were in the middle, the "just right" girls. She looked as though she would teach literature and certainly not the art of hand to hand combat. Quistis remembered reading her file and how Tifa was trained by the best martial artist known today. How fascinating, perhaps she could learn something from her.

Taking his eyes off Tifa, Squall decided so speak.

"Well now that everyone has been properly been introduced, please go ahead and begin the tour. I already gave you all your assigned classrooms so there's no need to report back. Once you're done your free to do as you please. Dismissed"

"Well shall we?"Quistis said.

They made there way to the elevator and down to the first floor. Once they were out the door they were greeted by many blank stares by some of the students. One of them being the loud rambunctious Zell Dincht.

"Oh my God..." Zell said as he stared at the group with his mout hanging open.

_"Well here we go, it's now or never..." _Quistis took a deep breath and made her way towards Zell at the bottom of the steps along with the rest of the group.

"Zell, I understand that your surprised but that's still-"

"YOU'RE TIFA LOCKHEART!!!"

"What?"

Tifa looked at Zell with a blank stare but then showed him a sweet smile.

"I see you heard of me"

Jackie0114: Well that was kind of longer than I expected but it was fun to write Cid with his foul mouth. You know, before writing this chapter I thought I had all the pairings down, but now I'm not so sure anymore. Please R & R! Next chapter will be the tour around the campus and more appearances from the FFVIII characters. Oh in case your wondering about Vincent's appearance, refer to Dirge of Cerberus. I didn't want to give him his usual red look, not yet. I wanted him to look more professional, I mean come on, no one would hire him with his pointy shoes and red cape! So he basically looks like when he was a turk except his hair is longer. Till then!


	3. Operation Cloud Nine

Sorry for the long delay, hope you guys like it. Please leave reviews and any helpful tips that would improve my writing or story, your opinions are welcomed!

Disclaimer: I own nothing, *sigh* why must they keep reminding me? (last time putting this)

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"YOU'RE TIFA LOCKHEART!!!"

"What?"

Tifa looked at Zell with a blank stare then showed him a sweet smile.

"I see you heard of me"

Quistis was utterly confused. She thought that Zell was referring to Nanaki because, well, there is a wolf/lion/moomba walking around with the new instructors engaging in a conversation with them. She didn't believe that the first thing that shocked him was Ms. Lockheart.

Zell then ran up to Tifa and stopped right in front of her with his jaw hanging open still smiling.

"You were featured in the weapons magazine!"

Tifa blushed a bit and held the back of her neck. "I'm surprised anyone still remembers that, that was such a long time ago. Must be a big fan of the magazine I'm guessing?"

"I just so happen to be THE biggest fan of the magazine! I haven't missed one issue since it came out. But that's beside the point! You're Tifa Lockheart!"

"Boy, she knows what the hell her name is; now quit your fucking shouting already" Cid said to Zell, who didn't seem to pay any attention to him.

"Yes please any louder I believe the entire continent will have heard you" Nanaki said as he stood beside Cid.

Quistis turned her attention towards Tifa and gave her a questionable look. "You were featured in weapons magazine?"

"Only for a few months. I modeled with some of the weapons featured in the magazine and did a couple of interviews; it was a part time thing while I was getting my degree. Helped pay for tuition too."

"Well I guess that makes sense, your file did say you were one of the top martial-"

"QUISTIS!! Don't insult Ms. Lockheart with your lack of knowledge about her! Ms. Lockheart is THE best martial artist next to the legendary master Zangan, who happens to be the number one martial artist known today! She's his greatest pupil and has yet to learn his famous techniques and-"

"Zell, ok I get it, thank you for that lovely piece of information. Ms. Lockheart please excuse his behavior, usually seeds don't act this way." Quistis shot a glare towards Zell.

"Oh it's not a problem; I used to get this all the time back in Midgar when the first issue came out. I didn't know I would encounter some fans here too" She tucked away a strand of hair behind her ear still smiling at Zell.

"Ms. Lockheart, I know you must get this a lot but I am a really big fan of yours!" He looked at his hand, wiped it against his leg then extended it to Tifa. "My name is Zell Dincht, a rank A seed here at Garden, and one of the heroes who helped in the second sorceress war." He grinned at her very proudly, obviously trying to impress her. Quistis rolled her eyes at his statement, while Cid and Nanaki shook their heads. Quistis could've sworn she heard someone mumble out something along the lines of "idiot"

"It's very nice to meet you Zell" She chuckled as she shook his hand.

"I just want to say, you're much better looking person than in the magazines or any of the posters that I have of you"

At this point Cid burst out laughing while Vincent and Nanaki snickered behind Zell's back.

Quistis was growing weary of Zell's behavior as she pinched the bridge of her nose and let out a sigh. "Ok Zell that's enough now we need to go…"

"Sorry, I won't keep you waiting, what are you doing here exactly? Are you recruiting students here?! Cause if you are then I'd be happy to join!"

Tifa giggled at the sight of the over-hyperactive hero and his over excitement while Quistis kept to the same position and let out another frustrated sigh obviously trying to keep her cool. The other instructors were amused by the whole thing and kept watching, waiting for Zell to mess up and say something offensive so Tifa could beat the living crap out of him.

"Well I'm here as one of the new instructors. Ms, Trepe here was just giving us a grand tour of your wonderful school."

"You're kidding right? THE Tifa Lockheart, the greatest AND hottest female martial artist, second best only to Zangan, is gonna be teaching here?

At this point, Quistis trying her best to stay calm began to count to 10 backwards in her head. 'If he reemphasis that one more time, I swear to Hyne I'll strangle him'

"That's right"

Zell went quiet for a moment, before turning to Quistis and spoke to her in a low voice.

"You never told me she was going to be one of the new instructors"

Annoyed by Zell, Quistis crossed her arms and gave him a who-the-hell-do-you-think-you-are look. "That's actually not any of your business."

"Quistis, let me lead the tour"

"What? No, Zell, I was assigned to give them the tour; I can't neglect my duties just because you're a fan of Ms. Lockheart's. In fact, because you're a fan I'm not going to let you. You'll just keep asking her questions and gawk at her all day."

She knew what it was like to have people follow you around asking questions and worshipping the grounds she walked on. She feared that Zell was going to be like one of the Trepies and create a fan club for .

"Please Quistis, I'll be on my best behavior! I won't ask her anymore questions, I swear! Besides, don't you think you have other things you can be doing right now instead of wasting your time being a tour guide? C'mon Quistis…

Quistis eye twitched a little and was pretty sure that the vain on her forehead was quite visible, ready to burst any minute. Zell was making it very hard to keep her composure and not scream at him. "I'm sorry Zell, I just can't. Besides you haven't even met the other instructors."

Zell looked at the other two men and Nanaki, who was slightly surprised but didn't make too much of a fuss about it.

"Oh heh, sorry about that…" He said sheepishly looking at the other three.

"Geez kid, you act like you never seen a woman before, ain't you got some self respect? Hey, missy, think maybe your headmaster should open new courses that teach a little bit about respect and dignity. Shit, I can see you drooling all the way up there." Cid said as he pointed behind him.

Zell blushed a bit out of anger and embarrassment. Were he not in front of the lovely Tifa Lockheart, he would have given him a piece of his mind. "Ahem, again sorry about that."

"It's quite alright; we can see that you are rather fond of Ms. Lockheart here. It's only natural that you would focus all your attention on her." Nanaki said.

"Um yea…hey Quistis, just let me do it, please! I'll do anything!"

She looked at him with one eyebrow raised. "Really?"

"Hey now, if you're gonna be making THOSE sorts of arrangements, I suggest you two discuss those things privately." Cid said while smirking.

Quistis and Zell gave him a disgusted look and then back at each other. Feeling completely defeated and not wanting to waste anymore time, Quistis decided to give up. Zell can be damn persistent if he wanted too. That and she really just wanted time to herself.

"Alright fine, but only if it's ok with them AND if you help me grade my students papers for their next exam"

She then looked at the instructors. "Do you mind if Zell leads the tour?

Tifa looked at Zell and smiled "Sure I don't mind" Zell's heart skipped a beat at that moment.

Cid kept his hands in his pockets and looked around Garden while he responded "As long as he shows us where were supposed eat sleep, and not manage to piss me off, I'm fine"

"I don't see why not"

"Just as long as he keeps the tour short, I have no complaints." Vincent said as he finally decided to speak.

Zell gave them a big grin and then turned to Quistis giving her a big kiss on the cheek. "Thanks Quisty, you're the best!!"

Quistis blushed as he called her by her childhood nickname. Yes that's a way to gain respect from the new instructors. She was just about to say something to Zell until he began to run his mouth.

"Yes! Alright, let's get started! Allow me to introduce myself if you didn't already know, my name if Zell Dincht and I will be your new tour guide! Now if you all would kindly follow me and I'll let you know everything you need to know about Garden!"

And with that, they began to walk towards the infirmary. She chuckled once they were nearing the infirmary. Zell's excitement was just like Selphie's when she was planning the concert back in Fisherman Horizon. How her face lit up and she jumped up and down while she explained to everyone what they were doing. Hopefully Quistis didn't just make a huge mistake by putting Zell in charge.

Quistis sighed, "_At least now I'll have some time to myself today_"

The whole day was supposed to be dedicated to showing the new instructors around and answering any questions that they had. Since Zell so graciously took that task, she can finally relax. She hadn't had time to relax and not be stressed out over work with all the grading and planning out lectures. Now she had time to grab some lunch, maybe chat with her friends, and then maybe head over to Balamb and see if the latest whips were in stock. With that in mind, she headed towards the cafeteria. Once she got there she spotted out Irvine, Rinoa, and Selphie.

"Quisty over heeeerrreeee!!" Selphie seemed to have noticed her as well.

"Hey guys" Quistis said taking a seat.

"Afternoon Quis" Irvine said while tipping his infamous cowboy hat.

"Hi Quistis, you finished showing the new teachers around?" Said the young sorceress

"Oh, are there any more like Instructor Fair or Instructor Strife that will be joining the school? Selphie said resting her chin against her hands leaning on the table.

"I can go to their class and stare at them all day, especially Instructor Fair…"Selphie smiled obviously thinking about the instructor.

"Hey I'm right here darlin, the least you could do is wait till I'm not listening"

"Oh Irvy, you know you're the only one for me!" She gave him a quick peck on his cheek. "Besides' I'm just looking"

"I guess that's ok. Hey, Quisty, any more like Ms. Gainsborough?"

"Hey!"

"It's just a question, no need to get mad"

Quistis smiled at the two. "One of the Instructors named Vincent Valentine, not too bad on the eyes, but he's extremely quiet almost like Squall."

"Hmm the dark and mysterious type eh? I think that sounds right for you Rinny." Selphie grinned at Rinoa who smiled back.

"Just because I got through to Squall doesn't mean I like all guys like that, but still…"

"Well there's him and then there's Ms.-"

"Excuse me Quistis?"

All four turned to look at a certain blond instructor that was holding a manila folder in his hand.

"Oh hello Cloud"

"Hello Instructor Strife" Rinoa and Selpie said both at the same time while eyeing the young soldier. Irvine rolled his eyes at the girls as he waved to Cloud.

He nodded at Rinoa, Irvine, and Selphie. "I hope I didn't catch you at a bad time"

"Oh no it's fine! Please have a seat!" Selphie motioned her hands for him to sit right between her and Quistis.

"Thanks, but I actually just had a quick question."

"Sure what is it?"

"Well, Zack and I wanted to set up a few guest speakers to lecture some of the material that we're going to be covering. We thought it would be best if the students got see people who actually specialize in certain weapons. We just wanted to know if that sort of thing is allowed here."

"Guest speakers? We don't usually have too many people come by Garden and lecture but it should be ok. You just have to run it through the headmaster."

"Do we have to give the headmaster any background check, paperwork, or anything like that?"

"No, just tell Cid who will be coming to your class and why. I'm sure since you're asking them to lecture there's no need to do any background checks."

"So just basically get the green light from Cid right?"

"That's right"

"Ok just making sure. Didn't want to do anything that'll get us fired just yet. Thanks for your help Quistis."

"No problem, if you guys have any questions you can always come to me or any of the other Instructors, we'll be happy to help"

"I'll remember that. Well, I guess I better be going, thanks for your help again Quistis I'll catch you later" He started to walk away until he turned around and walked back to the group.

"Sorry I actually have another question" Cloud scratched the back of his head trying to fight back what looked like a blush. Selphie, Rinoa, and Irvine seemed to have noticed the slight shade of red on his pale face.

Quistis, being the only one not facing him, turned around to see Cloud again. "Sure what is it?"

"This is kind of silly, but do you mind if I, er, we, contact you if we need anymore help?"

"Um, I don't see a problem with that but like I said there are other instructors here on Garden"

"I know, It's just that we don't want to keep going around looking for any of the instructors since were new. We thought that it would be better if we could just contact you since you were our guide and all, if that's ok" Cloud once again scratched the back of his head still trying to fight back an embarrassed look.

"I guess that would be a hassle looking for any passing by instructor" She laughed "In any case, I don't mind. Do you have a pen and paper?"

Cloud fumbled with his pocket and pulled out his cell phone. "No but I can just put you on my phone for now" As Quistis was giving her number to Cloud, Selphie turned to Rinoa and whispered in her ear.

"Oh! Look at that, Quistis giving him her digits!"

Rinoa laughed and then put a finger to her lips indicating for Selphie to be quiet. After Quistis gave Cloud her number, Cloud closed his phone and put it back in his pocket.

"Thanks again Quistis, and don't worry about us contacting you all the time. We'll only call if we have too."

"Cloud it's not a problem, really. Just call me if you need me"

"Ok, well I better get going again. I'll see you soon" He then left for a second time.

Quistis watched as he left and turned to face her friends only to be met by the three grinning at her.

"W-What?"

"Looks like you got yourself another person to join the Trepies" Irvine said as he winked at her.

"What are you talking about?" She felt her cheeks grow hot at Irvine's comment.

"Oh c'mon Quitsy, you really bought that 'I'm new, so can I get your number if I need anything?' Really Quistis for a smart girl you sure are naïve. I got to hand it to him though, he played that off real smooth" Irvine finished as he stroked his chin.

"Oh please, I'm just helping another colleague in need"

"So you're saying you're not interested?" Selphie said as her grin widened.

"Huh?"

"What's not to like? He's tall, he's got a smooth voice, gorgeous eyes, smart,he knows how to handle a sword, he's a teacher, and he's got a nice body, and-"

"Ok Selphie we get it, the man's attractive get to the point" Irvine said with a hint of jealousy in his voice

"He's young, perfect for you! Quistis I approve!"

"Selphie first of all, I'm not interested in a relationship right now and second, he probably isn't interested in me."

"Please, did you see the way he was avoiding eye contact with you and how shy he looked, which happens to be the cutest thing I have ever seen."

"Rinoa not you too"

"You should just give it a shot, you've been on the market for too long! It's time to make a sale!"

Quistis sighed. Why were they so concerned about her love life all the time? She just didn't have the time to be committed right now. She was happy with just being single for the moment until she finished her career. Although, she was slightly jealous of the rest of her friends, having found someone that would care for them and shower them with love and affection. But there was no reason for her to be jealous; she was a strong independent woman who doesn't need someone to catch her when she falls. She can just pick herself up and try again.

But still, it's probably nice to have someone who's willing to do that…

"You guys I'm fine really! Look I need to go back to my room and take care of a few things, I'll see you later" With that, she said good-bye to the others and headed to her room.

"Do you think we hurt her feelings?" Rinoa said as she bit on her finger nail watching Quistis walk away.

"I don't know, but I do know that she's lonely and needs someone there that can take care of her. She can't do everything herself as much as she wants too" Selphie sat against her chair watching Quistis leave the cafeteria .

"I don't know, Quistis is one of those independent women who are too damn stubborn to ask for help, I think it be best to leave her the way she is."

"You mean unhappy?" Selphie turned and gave a sharp glare towards her cowboy lover

"You know that's not what I meant" He eyed Selphie carefully, feeling a bit offended.

"You know what! I'm sick of seeing our Quisty so depressed! I think we should try to get her and instructor Strife together!"

"And how do you suggest we do that? We can't exactly go up to him and say; hey our friend is in dire need of a relationship are you interested because you would be a perfect candidate!" Rinoa clasped her hand together pretending Cloud was right in front of her.

"I don't know, at least not yet." She smiled evilly as she looked a Rinoa.

"Oh you already have something in mind? Rinoa asked as she gave Selphie a similar smile.

"Now now ladies, what just a minute-" Irvine tried to intervene in whatever plan Selphie and Rinoa were trying to cook up, but sadly his voice went unheard.

"Rin meet me in my dorm in 0600 hours tonight! Were going to plan out operation-get -Quisty-and-Instructor Strife-together!" Selphie happily exclaimed to Rinoa as she pounded her fists in the air.

"Yea! Wait, why at 6? Why not now?" Rinoa looked at Selphie with a confused look.

"I have no idea, it just sounded cool!" She smiled brightly at Rinoa who was still confused but just smiled at her anyways.

"Ok, 6 it is! Will plan out operation" Rinoa stopped smiling and thought for a second. "I think operation get Quisty and Instructor Strife together is kind of long, maybe we should change it?"

"Well what do you want to call it?" Slightly irritated at Rinoa for wanting to change the name of her operation. She can call it whatever she feels like it dammit!

"How about…" She thought for a few more seconds with her finger to her chin. "Operation Cloud 9?


End file.
